The Wednesday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories
Highlights from the news file for Wednesday, Jan. 3
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WOMEN CLAIM CANADIAN THEATRE FIGURE HARASSED THEM: A prominent figure in the Canadian theatre world has been forced to step down from the well-known company he co-founded amid separate lawsuits from four actresses who allege he exposed himself, groped them, and otherwise sexually humiliated them. The lawsuits naming Toronto-based Soulpepper Theatre Company and its founding artistic director Albert Schultz were filed this week by Patricia Fagan, Hannah Miller, Kristin Booth and Diana Bentley, who have all agreed to be named publicly. In her claim in Ontario Superior Court, Miller says Schultz, 54, harassed and sexually assaulted her when she was a performer with Soulpepper and as a member of Soulpepper’s academy. Miller is seeking $650,000 in general and punitive damages for “sexual battery, the intentional infliction of mental suffering (and) harassment of a sexual nature,” according to her claim, which has yet to be tested in court. The claim also seeks $800,000 from Soulpepper. Similarly, Fagan alleges in her lawsuit that Schultz assaulted her during a rehearsal of “Twelfth Night” in 2000, when he tried to show an actor what he wanted by “pushing his penis against her buttocks.” The women’s lawyer, Alexi Wood, said in a statement that Soulpepper did nothing to protect the actresses from Schultz, who is also an accomplished stage and screen actor.
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